Official request for Gülen's extradition has begun


With Ankara continuing its devoted efforts to combat the Gülenist Terror Organization (FETÖ), which is considered a national threat by the government due to its illegal wiretapping of thousands of people, including government officials, encrypted phones and infiltrating state institutions with the aim of toppling the government, Justice Minister Kenan İpek said on Thursday to a local newspaper that official procedural correspondence for the extradition of the controversial fugitive cleric and leader of FETÖ, Fetullah Gülen, who lives in self-imposed exile in the U.S. in Pennsylvania, has begun. Underlining that the official procedure for the extradition is being done with U.S. officials, İpek said: "Gülen does not have an infinite residence permit, thus it will come to an end soon."

Sources have claimed that Gülen fled to Canada Wednesday night from the U.S. İpek said, that once Interpol issues a Red Notice and Gülen's residence permit expires then he will immediately be captured and extradited. Commenting on Gülen's U.S. residence permit, İpek said that while the process is being held according to international laws, a U.S. court has responded by saying that canceling Gülen's residence permit is currently under consideration.

Stressing that the National Security Council's (MGK) decision on Gülen was conveyed to the Prime Ministry and to all relevant organizations, İpek said that Ankara's fight against the Gülen Movement will continue until the end. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had also discussed Gülen's extradition during the one-on-one meeting he had with U.S. President Barack Obama during the G20 Summit in Antalya. While sources reported that Erdoğan urged Obama to extradite Gülen, he provided details of the threat that FETÖ and Gülen impose on Turkey as well as other nations.